VW recalls 91,800 cars over engine-caused brake booster issues

Volkswagen of America informed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Wednesday morning that it will voluntarily recall 91,800 vehicles in the U.S. over engine camshaft failures that can cause a loss of braking power and result in a crash.

The affected vehicles span the 2014 and 2015 model for cars powered by the new 1.8-liter and 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engines, including Beetle, Beetle Convertible, Golf, Golf SportWagen, Jetta and Passat.

"The rear camshaft lobe has the potential to unexpectedly shear off from the camshaft," VW stated. The result is a vacuum loss to the brake booster, which aids in supplying brake pressure. Without the added boost, the brake pedals will be much harder to depress, thereby degrading braking power. And without normal braking force, a crash could easily take place.

Volkswagen said it will notify all owners of affected vehicles and will instruct them to arrange for an appointment with an authorized Volkswagen dealer, if it is identified as having come from one of the affected production lots.

If you've ever driven a car that doesn't have power brakes, you know exactly how hard brake pedals can be to depress without assistance. Suddenly going from full brake assist to none at all on a modern car, I imagine, would be quite frightening.

No injuries have yet been reported due to the recently discovered camshaft failure. So it would seem VW has learned its lesson about staying out ahead of scandals. On Tuesday afternoon, the Volkswagen Group put out a statement indicating it had identified 800,000 VW Group cars that showed emissions "irregularities." It also estimated the fallout from this new slew of emissions-compromised cars could cost the Group over $2.19 billion.

How much this recall will cost the company was not indicated. However, the dollar amount will likely be far less than the toll another negative story about the brand will have on sales and the company's future.

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